RIYADH: Iran fired three ballistic missiles toward Riyadh early Sunday as it continued its daily attacks on Gulf states amid its war with Israel and the US, the Saudi Defense Ministry said.
Major General Turki Al-Maliki, the ministry’s spokesman, said one of the missiles was intercepted, while the other two “fell in an uninhabited area.”
Twenty-three drones were also launched toward the Kingdom’s Eastern Province, all of which were intercepted and destroyed.
On Saturday, Saudi air defenses shot down 62 drones concentrated on the Eastern Province — home to the Kingdom’s major oil fields and refineries.
The latest figures bring the total number of drone strikes targeting Saudi Arabia to almost 600 since February 28, with 45 ballistic and seven cruise missiles also launched since the start of the US-Israel-Iran war.
The escalation comes as Saudi Arabia took the dramatic step of expelling several Iranian military officials, declaring the Iranian embassy’s military attaché, assistant military attaché, and three additional staff members persona non grata, ordering them to leave the Kingdom within 24 hours.
Riyadh also renewed its condemnation of what it called “blatant” Iranian attacks, warning they violated international law, the Beijing Agreement, and UN Security Council Resolution 2817 (2026) — and that the escalation would have serious consequences for bilateral relations.
The UAE said it engaged four ballistic missiles and 25 drones launched from Iran on Sunday.
Air defenses have “engaged 345 ballistic missiles, 15 cruise missiles and 1,773 UAVs,” the defense ministry said in a statement.
Bahrain said early Sunday they have intercepted and destroyed 143 missiles and 244 drones destroyed since start of Iranian attacks, while Kuwait on Saturday reported that air defenses detected and intercepted nine ballistic missiles and four drones during the past 24 hours.
Jordan intercepted and destroyed 14 missiles and 21 drones, while one attack was not intercepted, during the third week of the ongoing war, a statement said on Saturday.
A total of 240 missiles and drones have been launched towards Jordan since the start of the war. The Royal Jordanian Air Force intercepted and destroyed 222, while 18 managed to evade air defenses.
